Question

When reformatting text with the ‘gq’ or ‘gw’ commands, I usually work on the whole paragraph, so the accompanying motion is ‘ap’. Sometimes, however, I want to reformat only a few lines (‘gw3k’ for example) and sometimes only one line.

For the last problem, “gwl” or “gwh” work, as they stay on the same line, but they’re not quite intuitive. Ideally, I’d like to use a motion that does nothing, i.e. has the cursor stand still. Is there anything like that?

Answer 1

Most Vim commands handle single-line operations as special cases, usually by repeating the keystroke. Examples are dd, yy, cc, etc.

Thus the opperations to reformat the current line are gqq or gww.

Given this convention, I’m not sure of a use for a “null” motion.